An exciting night for the Toronto Maple Leafs as they introduced their two new players, Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari, in hopes of actually winning a playoff round for the first time since 2004, with the general manager’s job at stake. If Kyle Dubus doesn’t win a series this year, he’ll likely be fired.
So the Leafs are concentrating while the Canadiens are just trying to nail down a full line-up. Toronto easily overcame Montreal 5-1.
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Wild horses
Justin Barron hit his own blue line in the crotch. He looked up as he carried the puck. Within a second the puck was on the stick of a Mike Hoffman charging down the left wing towards goal. It was another great outlet pass in Barron’s first period. Again he freed a player for a strong chance.
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Recently, Barron and Mike Matheson posted shot percentages that rival some of the best defensemen in hockey. Over Super Bowl weekend, they had 80 shot-share numbers as a partnership.
If a team wants to win the cup, their top pair need to have a bit more play overall than Matheson and Barron, but as the two develop, the two defenders could make an excellent back-up pair.
Any time two defenders can get up to 80 shot percentage, they just lack the ability to do it over and over again. Just be consistently good. It doesn’t need more. The same commitment every evening.
From a talent perspective, Matheson is already established. Barron’s talent develops very quickly. Barron is the type of defender the Canadians have been missing. It’s a delight to watch the smooth skating, outlet passes and his ability to net shots by dancing along the blue line.
It’s hard to know the defender’s cap. You can’t just rely on their stats to compare them to all other forward stats and then just log them in. Defender caps depend not only on offensive stats, but also on smart decisions.
Considering that and his age of just 21, Barron could be a second pair of NHLers. If he continues to play like he did with Matheson, it’s entirely possible that this player, who was written off early at Laval, could be a key cog in the recovery.
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The overall remodeling of the defense is likely to have many second pairs of defenders. Many players have a good pedigree to show strong results. However, someone has yet to prove they have the potential for the first pair. Cup winner conversions need a Victor Hedman. They need a Cale Makar.
While Kent Hughes is struggling to get top ratings due to injuries, Josh Anderson is at his peak at the right time. Anderson scored his ninth goal in 17 games against the Leafs as a Canadiens player with a deflection from a point shot by Matheson.
Anderson heads the club with Nick Suzuki and Rafael Harvey-Pinard. They have scored the majority of the team’s goals in the last two weeks. Anderson is loved by GMs. He could get a first round pick and a top prospect. Hughes has said he has a request in mind and it hasn’t been granted.
wild goats
Arber Xhekaj’s injury looks serious. Xhekaj pointed his shoulder to Vincent Desharnais after a fight against the Edmonton Oilers last weekend. Seven days later, the Canadians put Xhekaj on the injured list and recalled Laval Rocket’s Corey Schueneman.
The Canadians released an interesting piece of information when describing the injury. They said that Xhekaj will see a specialist in the coming days. After this visit, an assessment of his future can be made.
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A simple shoulder injury usually does not require a specialist. They’re usually pretty simple. Usually the doctor on duty can make a diagnosis. Then someone more advanced has to assess if this is a sign that it might be significant.
The only positive here is that it’s mid-February and the next important game the Canadians will play is next October, so even if the injury is serious, Xhekaj should be healed by next season.
Even if it were Tommy John’s surgery for a UCL injury, Xhekaj would be available just before opening day. The worst case scenario is not costly apart from the games played in development Xhekaj is enjoying this season.
It’s been quite a tough season for the club that year, including the loss of top scorer Cole Caufield to shoulder surgery. Hopefully next season can be better as the club look to take another step up in rebuilding.
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wild cards
Trading Ryan O’Reilly from the St. Louis Blues to the Toronto Maple Leafs was good for the Montreal Canadiens. The market has been established and favors the sellers by a wide margin.
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Two of the four centers are now off the board and they are costing buyers dearly. Bo Hornet went from the Vancouver Canucks to the New York Islanders and he clinched a lot, including a first-round pick. O’Reilly was traded Friday night and he also picked up a lot, including a first-round draft pick.
Two remain and one may not appear to be traded at all as Jonathan Toews continues to have ongoing long-term health issues. That leaves only Sean Monahan as the vaunted center for the remaining teams to shore up their lineup down the middle.
The wildcard is that Monahan needs to be back on the ice before March 3 to play some games and prove to the hockey world that he can still play at the high level he did earlier this season. To his credit, the injury to his foot is unrelated to the hip issues that have been plaguing him.
The injury he’s now healing is simple and structured, but that doesn’t mean other GMs won’t have an emotional red flag, as if the player had to carry a four-leaf clover in their pocket. GMs can be as emotional as anyone. The hip bone isn’t connected to the foot bone here, but tell that to a GM.
Unless he shows he can play on that foot bone, teams will be concerned. On Saturday afternoon, Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said Monahan’s healing has plateaued. That’s a mysterious statement that no one has really been able to penetrate to know if that means he’ll be playing soon or not.
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Monahan has worn a contact jersey in practice so his return would normally come sooner. If he can perform at all before the close, he should have a good return considering Monahan’s point-per-game is actually better than O’Reilly’s midway through this year.
Not to say that they are the same, but that they are in the same stadium. O’Reilly has a Stanley Cup to his name, but so does Joel Edmundson, and you don’t hear the argument that it’s worth a hefty price tag. Both O’Reilly and Edmundson have been shadows of themselves since the Blues won the trophy.
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It’s hard to say how the league will view Monahan. From a point, faceoff and shot percentage perspective, Monahan’s season is superior to O’Reilly’s, but after that, all intangibles favor O’Reilly, from health to a ring on his finger.
It’s not inconceivable that if Monahan can play some respectable hockey showing health and some points before the deadline, he’ll pick a first-rounder too.
The most likely suitor is the Colorado Avalanche. Last season, the Avs and Canadiens were trading partners, so the story is helpful. Colorado won the cup with a strong midfield, and they don’t have the same midfield as last season. The Avs did not replace Nazim Kadri.
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If the Avs want to win another trophy this year, they absolutely have to get stronger in the center position. It’s up to you. They’re running for the cup again with a better middle, or they just won’t run. If they want to win the middle, only one player is available to win the game.
That’s probably the best negotiating chip General Manager Kent Hughes has. Every team wants to be stronger in the middle. In fact, Toronto already had Auston Matthews and John Tavares and still didn’t feel like they had enough.
14 teams with cup ambitions who have not strengthened their club in the middle go to the deadline and only one middle that can make a difference for them.
All Canadians need is Monahan to play a few games and be healthy. If he can do that, the Canadiens should have another first-round pick in this NHL draft. That would be three in this pending draft.
This is how you do a remodel. Get a first round to take the Monahan contract and another first round to sell the contract. When it comes to management, this is the stuff of legends. Two weeks until we know if everything fits. Should be exciting or, if Monahan doesn’t recover, a big disappointment.
Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sportswriter, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after every Canadian game.
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